Sears Holdings, owner of retail giants Sears and Kmart, announced Wednesday that dozens of the stores will be closing as the business "take[s] actions to strengthen the Company’s operations and fund its transformation.”

The Illinois-based company says 78 Kmart stores and 26 Sears stores will be closing this spring.

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Sears Holdings says that many of the closing stores have struggled with their financial performance for years. The hope was to allow the stores to remain open to maintain local jobs in an effort to turn profits around.

The news comes a little over a week after Sears Holdings made a similar statement, announcing the closure of 30 Kmart locations and 16 Sears locations. Eligible associates will be able to take part in a severance package or relocate to another Sears or Kmart store.

Liquidation sales will begin at various locations beginning on Jan. 6, the company says.